Trump Administration Nominations Update

After new presidential elections in the United States, incoming U.S. administrations make numerous changes to key personnel across the federal government. These include the president's political appointment of thousands of high ranking officials to serve in a host of policy and strategy positions to implement the new administration's agenda.

For the new Trump administration, the pace of nominations has been decidedly slower when compared to previous changes in administrations, with the fewest nominations in 40 years. Of the more than 1,100 positions requiring confirmation, President Trump has nominated only 277, according to the nonprofit nonpartisan organization that assists in federal government transitions. Of those 277 appointments, less than half have been confirmed by the Senate.

One area where President Trump has outpaced his predecessors is on nominations of federal judges and U.S. attorneys for states across the country, which serve as the top federal prosecutor and the government's chief civil lawyer in their district. Mr. Trump has also announced candidates to serve as Comptroller of the Currency, the top regulator of national banks, and the Vice Chair of Supervision at the Federal Reserve, both of which are expected to play key roles in the president's agenda to reshape the U.S. financial regulatory system.

Following the August Congressional recess, the Trump administration announced 42 new appointments, including nominees for positions in the Departments of Justice, Agriculture, and Defense, executive agencies such as NASA, and key White House officials.

When it comes to implementing the administration's foreign policy, President Trump recently named candidates for ambassadors to countries such as Germany, India, Croatia, Estonia, and Switzerland. However, U.S. envoys to other countries such as Argentina, Australia, Austria, Cuba, Egypt, Finland, Ireland, Jordan, Norway, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Sweden, and Turkey and to international representative bodies such as the EU, OAS, OECD, OSCE, and UNESCO are still awaiting nominations.

Among Cabinet-level departments, just 20 percent of nominated positions are now filled, with agencies such as the Departments of Energy, Agriculture, and Labor at less than 10 percent. At the Department of State, only 46 nominations have been submitted for 131 appointees. Notably, neither the State Department nor the Department of Defense has an assistant secretary for Asian and Pacific affairs, which are seen as vital posts considering the current tension in that region.

The following are among the more high profile posts that have been recently nominated by President Trump:

What has impressed me the most in my many years of working closely with the Blue Star Strategies team is their geographical breadth. From Eastern Europe to the Middle East to Central America, they are always able to deftly navigate the geopolitical waters.